Fota Wildlife need your help naming baby bison

Get thinking!

Fota Wildlife Park in Cork have announced the birth of their newest arrival - a baby bison, writes Sally Gorman.

Now they just need your help to name the little lady who was born on June 2 to first-time mother Red and father Hyssop.

The person who comes up with the best name will win a year-long Conservation Membership at Fota Wildlife Park...so get cracking!

The entry form can be found here.

We have just announced the birth of a new baby female European bison calf - and we need a name! Be in with a chance to win a yearlong Conservation Membership by suggesting a name for our new calf: https://t.co/ctBNa8RXgp #ReIntroduction #Fotawildlife pic.twitter.com/XfGfQwHMAw

— Fota Wildlife Park (@fotawildlife) June 13, 2018

Lead Ranger Aidan Rafferty says both mother and baby are doing well.

He said: “We’re delighted with our new addition to the European Bison herd and Red and calf are both doing great - as a first-time mother she’s adapting to her new calf very well, she’s very protective of her and they both are taking to suckling with ease.

"The European bison is currently listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as Vulnerable due to its small population size and Fota participate in the European-wide breeding programme ever since bison first arrived in Cork in 1999.

"A significant number of calves have been born in the years since and many have been sent overseas to aid in programmes being developed elsewhere as well as to the re-introduction programmes where the Fota descendants are now a part of some of the free-ranging herds in Europe.”